We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-09-29 · 7 min read · Independent comparison
If you want a complete, plug-and-play recording and streaming setup built around a USB-C audio interface, choose Lewitt CONNECT 2; if you need hands-on physical fader and encoder control over your DAW and MIDI hardware, choose Kellards Novation Launch Control.
• Lewitt CONNECT 2 — biggest strength: It's a full audio interface plus headphones and an XLR cable in one box, with a 72 dB mic preamp, 96 kHz / 24-bit conversion, and zero-latency DSP. You plug in a mic and start recording.
• Lewitt CONNECT 2 — biggest trade-off: It's an input and conversion device, not a control surface. There are no faders or endless encoders, so mixing stays on screen.
• Kellards Novation Launch Control — biggest strength: Eight 60mm faders, 24 endless encoders, 16 assignable buttons, dedicated transport controls, and an OLED display give you tactile, two-handed control over DAWs and MIDI gear.
• Kellards Novation Launch Control — biggest trade-off: It doesn't record audio at all. There's no mic preamp and no analog-to-digital conversion, so you still need an interface to capture sound.
• Who each is for: Lewitt CONNECT 2 for podcasters, streamers, singer-songwriters and anyone who needs to get audio in. Kellards Novation Launch Control for producers who already have an interface and want to stop clicking around with a mouse.
The CONNECT 2 is a bus-powered USB-C audio interface. That single sentence tells you most of what you need to know. It runs off the USB connection to your Mac, Windows PC or iOS device, so there's no separate power supply to hunt for and no wall wart taking up a socket. Plug the supplied XLR cable into a microphone, plug the headphones in, and you have a working studio.
The spec that stands out to me is the 72 dB of gain on the mic preamp. That's a lot of clean headroom, and it means dynamic microphones and gain-hungry ribbon mics don't need an inline booster to reach a usable level. Around that preamp, Lewitt built a set of features aimed squarely at people who don't want to fiddle: Autosetup and Autogain find sensible settings for you, Clipguard guards against overload, and there's a Denoiser, a Compressor, and three preamp voicings to shape the tone. The touch-based interface with LED metering keeps you informed without a screen full of menus.
Then there's Loopback mode, which is the feature podcasters and streamers will care about most. It lets you mix audio from software, games or a Zoom call running on your computer into what the interface records. If you've ever tried to capture both your voice and a guest's audio in one take, you know why that matters.
Conversion tops out at 96 kHz / 24-bit, with two headphone outputs and two monitor outputs for speakers. A Hi-Z instrument input handles a guitar or bass directly. The bundle includes a pair of Polsen HPC-A30 closed-back studio monitor headphones, which is the right choice here: closed-back headphones isolate you from the room and keep click tracks and monitoring bleed out of an open mic. For tracking vocals in an untreated room, that isolation is genuinely useful.
Buy it if you need a first interface, a streaming rig, or a simple mobile recording setup and you want the headphones and cable included. Skip it if your problem isn't getting audio in, but getting your hands on your mix — the CONNECT 2 has no faders, no encoders and no transport controls.
This bundle is built around the Launch Control XL 3, a control surface for DAWs and MIDI gear. Where the CONNECT 2 is about capturing sound, this is about manipulating it. Eight 60mm faders give you real throw under your fingers, 24 endless encoders handle pan, sends and plugin parameters, and 16 assignable buttons split across two banks cover mutes, solos, and whatever else you map. Dedicated transport controls mean play, stop and record live under your hand instead of on your keyboard.
The endless encoders are the detail I'd point a buyer toward. Because they have no physical end stops, they pick up parameter values instead of jumping them, which is what makes mapping them to plugin controls feel natural rather than jarring. The OLED display tells you what's currently assigned, so you're not guessing which knob does what.
Mapping happens through Novation's Components software, and you can store up to 15 user-defined custom modes. That's the part that matters for hybrid setups: one mode for your DAW, another for a hardware synth, another for a live rig, all recalled without re-patching anything. Out of the box it supports most major DAWs, so many people can start working without building a template first.
Connectivity is USB-C for the host, plus 5-pin DIN MIDI In, Out, and Out2/Thru for hardware. The bundle adds a 10-foot Kellards MIDI-to-MIDI cable, which pairs with those DIN ports for controlling external gear, and the same Polsen HPC-A30 closed-back headphones included with the Lewitt bundle.
Buy it if you already own an interface or mixer and your bottleneck is mouse-driven mixing, automation, or dawless hardware control. Skip it if you have nothing to record with yet — this bundle captures no audio, has no mic input, and won't get a vocal onto a track by itself.
• Best for recording vocals or instruments → Lewitt CONNECT 2. Mic preamp, Hi-Z input, 96 kHz / 24-bit conversion. The Launch Control has none of these.
• Best for podcasting and streaming → Lewitt CONNECT 2. Loopback mode, Denoiser, Compressor, and Clipguard are built for spoken-word and live capture.
• Best for mixing with your hands → Kellards Novation Launch Control. Eight faders and 24 encoders beat a mouse for fader rides and automation.
• Best for dawless or hybrid hardware rigs → Kellards Novation Launch Control. 5-pin MIDI In, Out and Out2/Thru plus 15 storable custom modes.
• Best for a beginner starting from zero → Lewitt CONNECT 2. Autosetup and Autogain mean you don't need to understand gain staging on day one.
• Best for a producer with an existing interface → Kellards Novation Launch Control. It adds control without duplicating the conversion you already own.
• Best for iOS or laptop-only mobile work → Lewitt CONNECT 2. Bus-powered over USB-C and compatible with Mac, Windows and iOS.
• Best for transport and session navigation → Kellards Novation Launch Control. Dedicated transport controls and an OLED display.
• Best monitoring in both bundles → a tie. Both include the same Polsen HPC-A30 closed-back headphones.
In my opinion, most people searching these two names should buy the Lewitt CONNECT 2. It's the one that actually makes sound happen: preamp, conversion, monitoring, headphones and cable in a single bus-powered box. Until you can record, a control surface has nothing to control. I'd only steer you to the Kellards Novation Launch Control if you already have an interface and your real frustration is mixing and hardware control — in that case the faders and encoders earn their place immediately. Check the current price on Amazon for both before deciding, since the bundles include different amounts of gear.
FAQ
what are closed back studio headphones
what is closed back studio headphones
It's the same category described another way: headphones built with a solid outer shell rather than an open grille. That design gives you more isolation and less bleed into a live microphone. For recording vocals in a room with a mic open, closed-back is the practical choice.
what are the best closed back studio headphones
"Best" depends on your job. For tracking and streaming, you want isolation and comfort; for critical mixing you may prefer open-back instead. I can't name a universal winner, but I can say the Polsen HPC-A30 included in both bundles is closed-back and fits the tracking and monitoring role these setups are built around.
what is open back studio headphones
Open-back headphones use a grille that lets air move freely behind the driver, which typically produces a wider, more natural soundstage. The trade-off is that they leak sound and let room noise in. That's why they're usually kept for mixing rather than recording with a live mic nearby.
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